Tuesday, January 01, 2008

Keeping a creative journal in the museum and heritage world

I have been keeping a 'creative journal' for just over a year now and so, thought it might be an idea to review its usefulness.

My method is to buy a really nice A4 book. I divide page in 2 and headline each day. I use pictures to represent places I have visited and events I have attended. The pictures are mostly taken from my Treo mobile phone - quality is appalling but it is always with me so like a lomu gives some interesting result. I try and take pictures of me in various places - although I don't like it as I've got to the age when all pictures remind you that you are getting old and ugly! I would like to illustrate the journal with drawing but cannot draw - I do intend to go on a course to try to learn to draw. I also use printed ephemera whenever possible and should continue with this.

I use words to describe the day,and have tried using headings, subheadings, underlining and use of icons for repeating events to make it easier to scan through.

I have tried to tidy the journal up using simple graphic methods such as alignment and proximity (derived from reading the Non-Designers Design Book).

The inspiration for the journal came from my attendance on a PG Certificate in Higher Education where we learnt of the importance of reflective practice AND the fact that we ask students to keep creative journals. So I thought I should try it out. One of my students, Caf Fean, brought in a lovely book called:

Drawing from Life - the journal as art by Jennifer New

which acted as an inspiration with some amazingly beautiful examples and on the internet I found another more down to earth guide called:

How to make a journal of your life' by D Price.

Looking at the journal for this year I have the following observations

Although I have made it less messy it is still not a work of beauty! Pictures are good but there is generally an absence of the people in my life - so I should include photos of people I meet and try to make the images represent those I spend time with. Also I need to find a way of representing places I visit on a regular basis in an innovative way. The erratic nature of the quality of my printer is also a concern.

The writing - very brief and designed for me - I need to make it more interesting so have decided to find someone I am going to write it for - no idea who as yet - although I am thinking of an, as yet unborn, grandchild.

From a personal point of view I have really enjoyed doing it - using images as well as text makes it very easy to review past periods quickly. Having kept diaries from time to time I have found the main problem with them is that their density makes it difficult to review long periods of time - frankly, it get boring reading them,and if you are like me, it is hard to read the handwriting. The use of images helps skip back and review activity - a whole year in 30 minutes - each picture is a great aid-memoir.

It has changed my life to an extent - in that it has reminded me that I have a very interesting and varied life while I did have a tendency to think I had a boring life. Also, it has made me more optimistic, made me feel I was getting somewhere and that I was creative.

On the downside, it does take time and maybe if I was not navel gazing I might actually get that book written or that project pinned down. It has not helped keep ideas current - the ideas are still stuck somewhere in my head or out there in the journal, so, so far, the journal is useful as a diary of what I have been doing - less successful as a diary of my reflections, thoughts and idea development.

The journal is a public document in that I do not keep it secret and don't mind friends and family to look at it - but this means I am missing something as it means I censor it. So, in a way I am absent from the journal.

The relationship with the Blog is also difficult because half of the stuff is here and half in my journal- not sure which is more useful.

I would say, so far, more successful from a personal level than a work level. I am sure it will be interesting to look back on in years and generations to come.